Toronto, Canada - The Universal Peace Federation’s Central District of Canada held a Legacy of Peace event on August 8. About 90 members of UPF Central District including 70 Ambassadors for Peace gathered in High Park to honor peace heroes who did their part to establish a legacy of peace. Those honored included:
- Lester B. Pearson, former Prime Minister and recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize in 1957 for organizing the UN Emergency Force to resolve the Suez Canal Crisis
- John Humphrey, Director of the Human Rights Division in the UN Secretariat, who was given the task of drafting the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and pursuing its adoption through the endless hurdles at the UN
- Terry Fox, a Canadian patriot who attempted running across Canada for cancer research at the pace of a marathon a day with a prosthetic leg
- Abdurrahman Wahid, former President of Indonesia who did his utmost to achieve peace in Aceh
- Paul Sullivan, a Toronto peace advocate and devoted father remembered for his untiring efforts for peace
- Father Petro Bilaniuk, Arch-Priest and Honorary Canon of the Ukrainian Catholic Church, Professor of Theology at the University of Toronto, who advocated peace tirelessly
- Seung Do Chang, a long-time supporter of Rev. Sun Myung Moon
- Caridad Nabus, friend of UPF, who was widowed at age 45 and as a single parent raised ten children, among them Willie Nabus, an Ambassador for Peace
- Slobodan Subotin, father of the President of the Women’s Federation for World Peace of Canada
- Dr. Jan Kryspin, a medical doctor and freedom fighter from Eastern Europe who migrated to Canada
Framed pictures of each were placed on a table with floral bouquets placed in front of them.
Homage was also paid to notables General Alexander Haig, NATO commander and US Secretary of State; Hon. Rodrigo Carazo, former President of Costa Rica; Hon. Steingrimur Hermannsson, former Prime Minister of Iceland; Hon. Kim Dae Jung, former President of Korea; Sheikh Hassan Cisse from Senegal, who served on UPF’s Presiding Council, among many other dignitaries who served the cause of peace all around the world.
The event consisted of an overview by Rev. Paul Tamale followed by invocations by Auth. Qamrul Khanson and Rev. Christian Lee Kambashi, seeking the support of Almighty God for our betterment and the establishment of peace.
The event was followed a brief lecture by Rev. Mitch Dixon on how birth, marriage, and death are viewed by various religious traditions. The ceremony was a time of appreciation, gratitude, reflection, and renewal. Just as our birth and marriage blessing are critical turning points in each of our lives, the Memorial Festival of Ascension and Unity provides the concluding moment. Let each of us live so that our own passing and the passing of those we know and love will merit the epitaph of a day of the victory of love.
In the year of his 90th birthday and golden wedding anniversary, UPF founder Rev. Sun Myung Moon encouraged people to pay homage to individuals who have dedicated their lives in service to peace. This day’s program was organized to help remind us of the value of our own lives and the opportunity given each of us to leave behind a legacy of peace.
Our special thanks go to Rev. Christian Lee Kambashi, who prepared beautiful flower arrangements for the event, and Diane Dixon, who organized the photos. The event was followed by a potluck picnic of lots of food shared by all. Various fish and rice dishes with succulent fruits made the dining a memorable event for all the religiously and culturally diverse members of UPF.
The event left all pondering life’s larger meaning and how we can live together in peace. We were all pleased to gather on this remarkable day to honor those who lived for the sake of others by encouraging each other to follow their legacy of peace.